Vehicle-spring



C, W. `THGIVYPSONl VEHICLE SPRING.

Hummm ULED MAR. 24. 1920.

515m: mail! C. W. THOMPSON.

VEHICLE SPRING. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 24,

Patented Des.. 289 1920.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

CLARANOE W. THOMPSON. OF WILIVIINGTON. DELAWARE.

VEHICLE-SPRING.

Application filed March 24. 1920.

le it known thut l, Cmnix'i'i; ll'. TironrsoN. u i-il'izen or' the lvnited Sintes. residing :it ll'iliuington. in the rounty ol ew Castle sind Stute of lelnwure. hure invented oeriuiu new und useful llinprovenuuls in Veliiele-lipriungs, ot' whieh the following' n slwi'ilifnlion.

The invention relnles io...de\'ices for .snpportine; :i bod).7 or equii'ulent purt resilientljiv on the running-geur ol u vehiele. und purtieulurl)v to rhone thul'- `ineuuie eounteruetine; .spi-ii *hut sustain the thrnete. shocks, :ind ,stresses resulting' lroni irregulurities in u rmidu'u)v und cushion the rebound that ooeure- :liter absorption thereof.

l1.: is un ohjeot of the invention to provide u derive ol that kind thul "will be sensitive to und readily uhsorptivo ol' thrusts. shofg'li's. und stresses, und nt the sume time "will uii'ord sullieient support for u loud under :ill eonditions of service.

rl"he invention also includes menus whore,- bjy iiui'eused resistente ot spring notion is u'orded between u run ning-geur und u body or its equivulent when. oonipurntively henry or Violent thrusts, shocks, or stresses are snetuined.

Means; ure provided ior adjusting; the tension of both the loud-sustaining und rebonn'` springs.

lWhen rend in eonnerizion witli'the description herein. 'the denile of eonstrur-tion und urrungenlent ol' ports vrintzinpluted by the inverdion will be upimrenl Vfrom the zirconipnnjcingr druu'inegs, formino: pnrt hereof, wherein nu eu'ilwdiiuent ol the invention is disvloeed. For purposes of illustration.

AWhile. the. disi-loeures herein in. considered to exemplify" what now ie, Considered to he i; nreleruhle einbi'uliinenii or the invention. ilV iS lo he u'x'iderstood i'hut Vit isinot the inlmuion to he limited neeesflfnrily thereto in iiuerpretnlion of the oluiins. us modifieniions und udupiini'ions VWithin the limits of the oluiins een he innde Witlmnt depnrtingr l'ronl the churnffleiisties of. the invention.

Like refr-renei-ehuruoters rel'or to (forrespondingg parts in the views of the drawings` oi' whirh- Figure i n longitudinul seetionfrl View;

Fig. Q is n transverse seetiounl View on the line 22. Fig. l;

v Specification of Leters Patent.

Serial No. 363.309.

Fie'. Il is u trunsverse seotionul View on the'line 3-l. Fig'. l; v

Fig. Jr is un elevation of the device :ind the member-ifby whioh ii is mounted in asso elution with u vehicle; und

Fig. 5 is un outline elemtion of n motorvehiele equipped with the device.

Having more purtiouln.' referenee to the drawings. Si designates un elongated hone;- ing/or (fusing. prelierubl7 oi' v lindrioul .forni und ol uniform cross-see-ifuml dimension throughout its length. v

'l'he hoi'lsingr is closed nl; one end by :i dislr lll .serewed thereinto. The disk constitutes un abutment for u spring yet to be desoribed. lt hns :in enlarged hezid ll shaped to reeeive u Wrench or other turning-tool7 und it is provided with :i pnssuge, Closed by :3. p iug l2, JforI injecting lubricant into the interior or' the housing.

An elonguted guide 13, preierziblyY in the 'forni of n round rod, is mounted by being;

screwed into the disk lll, there being a looknut 14 on the outer end of the guide to hold' it firmly in place. The guide extends from the disk centrally of and to the other end of'the housing.

A head 15 is mounted in the end of the housingr opposite to the disk l0 by having un exteriorly-tlireuded annular flange 16 there'oiE screwed into the housing, and the heud has un enlarged outer portion 17 shaped to receive a Wrench or other turning; tool. The flange nilords nn abutment or seat for n spring hereinafter described. The head has a central opening into which there is screwed and from which extends inwurdly :in exterioily-threaded. sleeve 18. The sleeve has inside of it one or more sots or' bull or other suitable entifrietion bearings l), it is shaped at its outer end 2O 'to receive u Wrench or other turning-tool, and in that end it has e packing-space 2l closed by u gland 22. The sleeve is ndjueteble longitudinally of the housing by turning in its threads.

hollow load-sustaining member 23, preferably in the form of u round rod, extends into the housingy through the sleeve 18 and over the guide 13. The member 23 is of uniform transverse dimension from its eX- 'terior to a place normally in the sleeve,

where it has an. annular abutment or shoulder 24:, and it extends therefrom in reduced size to its inner end.

The smaller portion'of the member 23 adjacent to the abutment 24: is exteriorly threaded and has screwed thereon a sleeve 25. A laterally-extending annular flange or .shoulder 26 is slidable on the smaller por- During movement in the-housing,.the

member 23 is guided by the sleeve 1,8 (or its anti-friction bearings 19), by the shoulder 26 bearing directly or through antifriction bearings against the yWall of the .,liousing, and by the guide 13, which latter fits snugly inside of the member 23.

The inner end portion of the member 23 carries a nut 28, which operates to retain on that member a slidable collar 29 by engagement with `an interior annular shoulder 30 thereof. The limit of sliding movement of the collar in one direction may be altered by turning the nut. The major portion' of the collar normally extends over and beyond the nut and the end of the member 23, and it has on its free end portion an exterior annular abutment 31.

The parts hereinbefore described are arranged to have load-sustaining and rebound springs associated therewith.

One of those elements is a comparatively large and strong load-sustaining compression-resisting coil-spring v32 interposed between the disk 10 and the'shoulder 26 on the member 23.

An auxiliary or safety compression-resisting coil-springv 33, inside of the spring 32, is interposed between the shoulder 26 ind the abutment 31 oi' thev collar 29.

A compression-resisting yrebound-absorbin(T coil-sprinv 34 is interposed between the.

shoulder 26 and the flange-16. 'A

The device may be interposed between a running-gear and a body orv its equivalent of a. vehicle' in any suitablel manner. For.

example, thehousing 9` may be conncected with a part of the riiniiing-gear vor of the body by a bracket or the like A extending laterally therefrom. vThe member 23 may have at its outer end a ball B in a socket of a member C arranged tobe'secured to the body or running-gear of the vehicle. A

iiorm'of installation in amotor-vehicle is disclosed by Fig. 5, whereln the houslng is connected with a memberot' the Arurminggear and the member 23 withthe body, one

of the devices being used on each side at the front and two on each side at therear. lt desired, however, the devices may be reversed, and the housing connected with the body and the member 23 with' therunninggear.

The parts are shown in the positions they .occup when no load is imposed on the device. hen the relative tension of the lsprings is such that the slidable shoulder 26 is against the end of the sleeve 18 under the influence of the expanding property of the main load-sustaining spring 32, and the expansive action of the auxiliary spring 33 keeps the collar 29 against the nut 2S and extended beyond the inner end of the member 23.

The position of the shoulder 26 in the housing in the absence of load is determined yby the extent to which the sleeve 18 projects into the housing. The amount of this projection may be altered by turning the sleeve in itsthreads and thereby changing the relative tension of the three springs. The tension of the auxiliary spring 33v may be altered by turning the nut 28. yThe extent to which the member 23 extends into the housing in the absence ofload may be altered by turning the sleeve 25 and thus changing the at-rest position of the shoulder 26 on that member, which action also will modify the tension of the auxiliary spring. 1

When, under the actionov load, thrusts, shocks, or stresses, the rember 23 is moved inwardly of the housing, the shoulder 26, which is carried with the member by the sleeve 25, o crates to compress the main spring 32,. )rdina-rily, the auxiliary spring 33 does not resist such action, as the shoulder 26 and the abutment 31 at first move without relative change of positions. If, however, after initial compressiom the main spring 32 does not overcome the action against it before the free end of the collar 29 comes into cont-act With the end disk 10, action against the auxiliary spring will occur at'ter movement of the collar -'s. stopped by that contact and While the me, ber 23 is moving in the collar, and the auxiliary spring will offer resistance,I in addition -to that of the main spring, to further movement ot' the shoulder 26 and the member on which it is mounted. i

The auxiliary/spring is suliiciently strong to stop -relative movement of the parts gradually before the inner end oi' the member 23 reaches the disk 10, and thus sudden stoppage ot such movement and damage that might `result therefrom. are avoided.

On relief of the device from the action that has caused compression of the main spring, that spring Will'expand and move the shoulder 26 and the member 23 toward member, means whereby said Shoulder is moved with said memnel` under the influence of load, menne` whereby movement of said shoulder with said member in the opposite direction is limited, zi spring resistinr mmement of said .slimld'er in the latter direi:- tion, :t main spring resisting movement of said shoulder under the influence of load, a

collar slidable on said membei', means whereby movement of said collar is stopped after initial action against sait main spring, and un auxiliary compression-resisting spring between Suid shoulder and collar.

In witness wlieref, I aflix my Signature.

CLARANCE W. THOMPSON.. 

